copal

American  

[koh-puhl, -pal] / ˈkoʊ pəl, -pæl /

noun

1. a hard, lustrous resin obtained from various tropical trees and used chiefly in making varnishes.

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copal British  

/ -pæl, ˈkəʊpəl /

noun

1. a hard aromatic resin, yellow, orange, or red in colour, obtained from various tropical trees and used in making varnishes and lacquers

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Etymology

Origin of copal

1570–80; < Mexican Spanish < Nahuatl copalli

Example Sentences

The scent of copal, a tree resin used by Mesoamerican cultures for spiritual, medicinal and practical rituals, wafts through the space.

From Salon • Oct. 13, 2024

The specimen that Poinar describes, which he named Myrmarachne colombiana, was entombed in a type of fossilized resin known as copal.

From Science Daily • Mar. 22, 2024

The smell of traditional resinous copal incense hung heavy over the parade.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 4, 2023

She broke it down to me: how I had to heat the charcoal and burn the copal over it, how it was meant to cleanse my space and stimulate my energy.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 9, 2022

“It’s only the copal incense we burn for the dead,” Consuela said.

From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer